Don't Stop Believing
by loner1357
Summary: George just died and everyone pretty much went to hell from there. Izzie left, which made things even worse. But one kid's tragedy will soon turn everything around. Whether it for the worse or not, we don't know. Just know that sometimes life doesn't want us to succeed. But if you don't stop believing that you can achieve your dreams, you will become successful one day or another.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 – Grave Digger

Owen ran past Derek and Teddy.

"Shepard. Altman. I need you guys down now. I have four victims that need all hands on deck."

Derek and Teddy ran after him. Owen got round to the nurse in the Emergency Room and asked her to page Robbins, Webber, and Sloan. The rest of the residents were paged. They all met outside the ER waiting for the ambulances to unload the victims.

The first one came into view and the paramedic busted open the doors of the rig.

"44 year old male burn victim with many lacerations to the chest and abdomen." The paramedic screamed.

"Okay. Altman and Grey, Trauma One." Owen ordered. Teddy and Meridith got the patient and went into the first Trauma room.

The second ambulance showed with another paramedic repeating the same actions as the one before.

"41 year old woman burn victim with lacerations to the chest, abdomen, and pelvic area. She is also pregnant."

"Alright. Sloan, Arizona, and Christina Trauma two." Owen ordered again. The three doctors and their residents took the woman into the second Trauma room.

The third ambulance arrived, but this time the driver and the paramedic got out of the front and opened the door for them. This caused everyone left to look in confusion as he opened the doors.

The doors opened to show a person on top of the victim performing CPR. The driver and the paramedic got the stretcher out and the person on top of the victim began talking.

"10 year old male burn victim with stabbings to the chest, abdomen, and lower back. He was also hit many times on the head. His heart stopped beating and he had no pulse so I started compressions. It's been too long, so GET YOUR ASS MOVING!" The person, no _kid_ , screamed at Owen.

"Grey, Karev, Avery, and Kepner, Trauma Three." Owen ordered.

He turned around to see that the fourth ambulance had not arrived yet.

"Where's the fourth ambulance?" Owen asked the paramedic in front of him.

"There is no fourth ambulance." The paramedic replied.

"Well then, where is the fourth victim?" He asked.

"On the stretcher trying to keep his brother alive."

Owen blinked and then ran back inside after realizing the ambulance already left to attend to another victim that was called in.

He ran into the Trauma room with the kid in it and saw everyone moving around the kid yelling on top of his brother.

"He has second degree burns on his hands. Took multiple blows from a bat and to both the chest and the abdomen, which made his upper chest turn purple, so he has some kind of bleeding in his thorax. He was stabbed in the back 27 times so there is definitely some bleeding near his spine. I was able to hold C-Spine from before the paramedics arrived and got his bleeding in the thorax controlled after draining his chest. He said he couldn't feel his legs before he passed out. After that, his heart stopped, and I have been doing compressions since and I will not stop until he has a pulse. SO GET THE FUCKING PADDLES!"

Owen snapped out of his daze when Meredith got the paddles. The kid got off his brother and moved to the back of the room to let the doctors work on fixing his brother.

He slowly moved back to the door and Owen put an arm on his shoulder, but only to have his face against the door the next second with his arm pushed behind him into his back, similar to a move a police officer makes before an arrest.

He was immediately let go when the kid realized who it was.

"I'm sorry."

"It's alright." Owen said.

"Any word on my parents? Last I heard, my dad was losing his pulse and my mom was bleeding from blows to her stomach."

Owen shook his head and the kid sighed before he heard the sounds of the machine in his brother's room going off.

The kid saw how the doctors worked fast, but he knew something was wrong when one of them slowly shook their head after two minutes. That was when he knew that his brother had died.

He turned to the wall and put his arms above his head before calming down and lowering his heart rate. He turned around to Owen again.

"Can you please get an update on my parents?"

Owen nodded and went into Trauma Two to find Arizona turning to him and shaking her head, telling Owen that neither the baby nor the mother had made it.

He sighed before going into Trauma One hoping at least that the patient was stable. However, his hopes were crushed when he found Derek angrily throwing his flashlight at the wall next to him. Owen knew what that meant. The patient was dead.

Owen turned around and found the kid sitting on a gurney stitching his abdomen where it looked like he was stabbed. Owen ran to the kid alarmed.

"Hey, you can't to that."

"Oh yeah, watch me." The kid said as he performed a perfect simple interrupted suture.

"How do you know that?"

"Almost two years as a volunteer paramedic. Also, my dad's a doctor." He scoffed.

"My name's Owen. What's your name kid?" Owen asked.

"Rajesh."

Owen raised his eyebrow.

"I know, but hey, it's unique. At least I know if people talk, they want to talk to me." The kid responded while smiling, but his smile diminished when he saw three doctors approaching him with faces that could already tell what happened to his family. He sighed and bowed his head into his hands before rising off the gurney and waiting for the words to come out.

Derek spoke first. "I'm sorry, but your father had too many injuries to the head. He developed an aneurism and it clotted his brain. He is dead."

Rajesh closed his eyes to calm himself down. "What about my mom? And the baby?"

Arizona stepped up this time and spoke. "I'm sorry, but the trauma to her chest was just too much for her to take. And the baby couldn't take the blows to her. She died on impact."

"She? I was going to have a sister?" He asked while tears escaped his eyes unwillingly.

"Yes. I'm so sorry." Arizona said as her voice was breaking.

Rajesh calmed down before he got hysterical.

"Um…Um…What do I do know? Are there forms I need to sign?"

Sloan spoke this time. "Yes, but actually, the police want to speak to you before any of that happened."

Rajesh scoffed. "Of course. They arrive late to the scene leaving my family almost dead, but now they're here on time."

"Mister Patel. We need to speak to you kid." The police officer said.

Rajesh formed a fist in his hand before he felt Owen's hand on him. He slowly released the fist and sat down on the gurney.

"I'll stay." Owen said. 

"So will we. We need to explain what happened afterwards." Derek said.

Everyone nodded and stood by as the officer asked Rajesh his questions.

"Can you start from the beginning?" The officer asked in an annoyed way.

"Right. So, I came home from school to find my parents car in the driveway. I opened the door and shouted for my parents, but I couldn't hear anything. I slowly walked to the kitchen thinking they wanted to try and scare me. We play those kind of games a lot." Rajesh said. He couldn't help but pause and smile in though of his family, but the officer brought him out of his thoughts.

"That's where I started to hear someone crying and some kind of muffled voice coming from the basement. That's when I suspected something was wrong. So I called 911 and told them, they said a police unit would be at the house in 5 minutes. So I went downstairs to find my family tied to chains from the ceiling by their hands. My mother and father were passed out, and my brother was the one crying. That's when I got them down from the chains and checked each of them. My mom had a pulse and I could feel the baby kicking in their stomach, so I thought she was ok, just passes out. My dad was unconscious but had a pulse, so I thought he was ok too. My brother, however, was still conscious and in pain. So I put a C-Spine on him after lowering him down. Then he started to loose a lot of blood and started losing his pulse. That's when I started compressions and waited for the paramedics."

Rajesh stopped before catching his breath. "But I didn't know someone else was in the house. While I was doing compressions, someone came from behind and stabbed me. He didn't do anything else though. I was kind of out of it for a few before seeing that the attacker left and then resumed doing CPR on my brother. That's when you decided to take your own sweet time and now I have a dead father, mother, brother and sister."

The officer closed his notebook and nodded.

"That's all I need for now son. I'll be back later. I am truly sorry for your loss. I will do everything in my power to make sure that this person is caught." And the officer walked away.

Rajesh started to realize what happened. He remembers holding his brother and telling him it would be ok. He remembers the sound of his screams when he lowered him down. His airway felt tight. He couldn't breathe. He lost his family. All in one night.

Derek noticed and started helping him. He put his hand on Rajesh's shoulder.

"Hey. Hey. Look at me. You're fine. You're ok. You are safe. Just breathe in. Breathe out. Good. Keep going. Breathe in. Breathe out."

Derek said that as Rajesh repeated each action.

Rajesh finally calmed down and could breathe. He forgot for one second who was around him and suddenly threw his arms around Derek's waist and cried into his scrub top.

Derek felt for the boy and hugged him back like he did with his sister every time she had a nightmare.

Rajesh just kept on sobbing. He couldn't get the images of his family out of his mind.

"Please tell me I'm dreaming. Please tell my family isn't dead." He sobbed. He sounded so vulnerable at that moment that Derek just hugged him tighter.

"I'm so sorry." Derek said.

Meredith and Arizona were shedding tears even though they tried to stop them from falling.

Derek finally got Rajesh to sleep in his office on the couch before closing the door and facing his wife.

Derek put his arms around her waist and just looked into her eyes.

"What are you thinking?" Meredith asked.

Derek sighed. "I know that we just got married. It's taken some time to adjust to living with our friends and us, but I can't help but feel for this kid. It just hurts. I've been there before."

Meredith nodded and began to think.

"We have a lot of space in the attic. We can clear out my boxes and put them in storage somewhere. After that, we can get him a bed, desk, chair, and anything else he needs."

Derek kissed his wife. "Thank you for being you. I love you so much."

Meredith smirked. "Your lucky you have me."

"Yes, I am."

They both walked back to see a social worker talking to Owen. Owen saw them and waved them over.

"This is Ms. Exton from CPS. She is looking for a temporary place to keep Rajesh before she finds a more permanent family for him."

Derek and Meredith both shook her hand.

Derek spoke. "Uh, actually, my wife and I were wondering if we could take him on a temporary basis. Since we work here, we can keep an eye on him as he sees someone after this traumatic event."

Ms. Exton nodded. "Okay. I will get the paperwork tomorrow to your office. In the meantime, you can take him home and get him settled. So let's see how this goes for sometime and then work on finding a permanent place for him."

Derek and Meredith nodded and went to wake up Rajesh to take him home. Derek walked into his office to find Rajesh curled up in a ball in the corner shifting from side to side.

"Rajesh? Rajesh. Come on buddy wake up." Derek said.

Rajesh kept on crying and moving. Derek didn't notice Meridith come in.

"Raj honey. Wake up." She said in a soothing voice. "Come on honey, you can do it. Wake up."

Raj slowly opened his eyes. He stopped crying immediately and wiped his cheeks of the tears.

"Sorry." He muttered.

"Hey, don't say that. We've had our fair share of traumas and we completely understand. Come on buddy, let's get you home." Meredith said.

"What?" Rajesh asked.

Meredith and Derek laughed before Derek spoke.

"You're gonna stay with us for now. We have some place and we can keep an eye on you when you see the counselor here and all."

Rajesh was too tired to argue. He closed his eyes and leaned on Derek before slurring an _okay_.

Derek smiled and led Rajesh out to the car with Meredith behind him. Meredith got in the back seat with Rajesh's head on her lap as Derek drove.

When they got home, Rajesh said the couch was fine for now. Derek tried making him sleep in the spare room next to theirs but Rajesh didn't budge. So Meredith got him a quilt and pillow for the couch and went upstairs.

Derek was setting everything away when he heard the doorbell ring. He opened it to find Owen.

"I told Christina that I would like to stay here and keep an eye on Rajesh. He's been through a lot and you may need me to help if there's an episode."

Derek nodded and led Owen to where Rajesh was. Owen took a seat in the chair next to him.

"I've had experience with lookouts, so I can stay here for the night."

Derek nodded again and went up to sleep next to Meredith while Owen got his laptop and started his paperwork while keeping an eye on Rajesh.

Even though he was there for any kind of panic attack, Owen knew that the kid was exhausted and that he would need all the rest he could get. He just hoped that Rajesh wouldn't do anything to harm himself. After all, he's going to have to dig four graves for his family.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Make You Feel My Love

Owen looked up from his laptop to see Rajesh squirming in his sleep.

"No ma. Please don't leave."

Owen got up when he started thrashing around. He held onto his hands and spoke to Rajesh trying to calm him down.

"Rajesh. Come on wake up bud."

Rajesh slowly opened his eyes before he quickly got up and pushed himself against the couch and away from Owen.

"Where am I?"

Owen raised his hands in a surrender motion.

"I'm Owen Hunt. I'm the doctor from earlier today."

Rajesh slowly started to remember the events of the day while Owen kept talking.

"You're at Meredith and Derek's house."

Rajesh nodded.

"I-I want to go for a run."

Owen looked at the clock that read 4:30 AM.

"Now?"

"Yeah. I always run in the morning before school. It clears my head. Plus I need it for soccer."

Owen nodded and got both of their shoes.

"Ok. I'll come with. I know a trail here. Just let me text Derek so he knows where you are."

Rajesh nodded as he got his shoes on. He had a lot to think about, especially how to tell his family.

They both walked out of the house and started jogging up the street. Rajesh actually recognized the trail that Owen was talking about from before. About 30 minutes into their run, Rajesh started leading Owen.

"Follow me." Rajesh said while taking in a breath.

Owen followed as Rajesh started to slowly inch away from Owen. Owen had trouble keeping up with him even though he was in the army. What he didn't know was that Rajesh had gone into some kind of hallucinated state, where all he could think about was his family.

Rajesh started to sprint faster than he ever had. He kept on running as he thought about his father's burn marks across his chest. The images changed to his mother's abdomen drenched in blood from being stabbed. His brother's face suddenly popped up. The sweet, innocent, and lovely boy who Rajesh had protected from every evil in the world was suddenly changed into the image of his dead born baby sister.

Suddenly, Rajesh was falling forward on the road having tripped on a crack in the road. He rolled a few times before his back hit the car and set off the alarm.

Owen caught up to see Rajesh getting up and dusting off the dirt off his shorts and shirt that he borrowed from the hospital before leaving. Owen stopped and bent down at his knees trying to catch his breath.

"You know, you just ran 10 miles."

Rajesh smirked. "That's a cool down on most days."

"Guess you run a lot."

"What gave it away?"

Owen smiled and slapped Rajesh's shoulder.

Rajesh turned to see the sun rising from the east. He noticed that he needed to get home before Derek and Meredith worry, so Owen called a cab and they left.

When they walked in through the front door, Rajesh could smell pancakes, eggs, and bacon cooking. Owen was surprised as well, knowing that neither Derek nor Meredith could cook. He was even more surprised to find Meredith behind the stove.

"Hello boys. Breakfast is served."

Rajesh sat down and started demolishing the plate of pancakes, eggs, and bacon in front of him. In this time, Meredith realized that Rajesh hadn't eaten anything since yesterday afternoon.

Owen ended up doing the same thing and Meredith looked at him like he was crazy.

"What?" Owen asked. "Do you know how far he runs? Try keeping up with him."

Derek scoffed as he came into the kitchen and ruffled Rajesh's hair. He stood before Meredith before they both looked at Owen. Owen knew what they were silently asking and nodded as he turned to Rajesh.

"So, there are some things we need to discuss."

Rajesh stopped his breakfast immediately and put down his fork.

"Ok."

Derek started talking about the procedures.

"So your family will be in the morgue until the autopsy is done. Then we have the funeral. After that, we have to figure out a place for you to stay."

Rajesh nodded.

"Ms. Exton said that she would contact your aunt in Virginia."

Rajesh shook his head vigorously.

"Please don't let me go. They don't like me. They hated my family because they had an inter-caste marriage and fell in love. They see me as the reason why their family is broken apart and why my mother can't ever talk to her family. Please don't."

Derek nodded as the doorbell rang. He opened the door to find Ms. Exton and invited her in.

She greeted Meredith and Owen as she walked into the kitchen as sat next to Rajesh.

"Hello Rajesh. My name is Ms. Exton and I am your CPS handler." She greeted.

Rajesh nodded mindlessly.

"So I have a few things to talk about with you. First, you do have an aunt in Virginia. She has been called up and is coming in a couple of days. But Dr. Shepard has told me everything as I came in."

Rajesh looked at Derek who smiled.

"You do have a choice on where you want to live, because these people have decided to foster you for some time if that is what you wish."

Rajesh nodded.

"This is the hard part. We need to go over your parents' will."

She took out a binder with a pocket folder and handed Raj a copy of the piece of paper she had.

"You parents decided that should anything ever happen to both of them, you would get the money to take care of yourself and your brother would get some as well. However, since your bother has also passed, you are entitled to all of the money in your parents' will."

Rajesh blinked. "How much money did they have?"

Ms. Exton looked at everyone in the room before answering.

"You are entitled to all of the 7.5 million dollars in your parents' name. You are also given ownership of the house and cars. So what you want to do with them is your choice."

Rajesh gasped. Never had he known his parents had this much money. Sure he lived in a decent house with four bedrooms and three floors, but he always thought his family led a middle class family type lifestyle.

"Where did they get this money?" Rajesh asked.

"I don't know honey, but it's yours now."

Rajesh didn't know what to do. On one hand, he could take the money. On the other, he could walk away. But how is he supposed to make this decision.

"The money is put in an account at the bank for you. You will be given access when you go down and change the titles in your name."

Ms. Exton gave him the file before getting another one.

"The police are still claiming your house as a crime scene and will be cleaning up the entire place after the investigation."

Rajesh nodded. "When can my family's funeral take place?"

Ms. Exton let out a breath. "Once the autopsy is done, your family will be able to have their funeral. It should take no more than two days."

Rajesh thanked her and got up from the table. He moved to the deck in the backyard and sat down on the steps.

* * *

Moments after Ms. Exton left, Meredith stepped out and sat next to him.

"You know, my mother was a renowned doctor. She even won the Harper Avery. But that didn't stop her from getting Alzheimer's. She basically became crazy for years and died later."

Rajesh started laughing. "That's ironic. Win a Harper Avery, slowly lose your mind."

Meredith ended up laughing at that and they both couldn't stop until they had tears in their eyes.

"I need to get my assignments from school." Rajesh said.

"We'll do that. But first, we need to get to the hospital. You can hang out there until we find something for you to do while we are there for the summer."

Rajesh went upstairs to the bathroom they showed him too and showered. Meredith stayed there since he would be covered by the glass and kept an eye on him.

When he was finished, he dried himself in the shower and changed in the spare bedroom.

He decided to wear an extremely comfortable pair of black joggers, a plain white t-shirt, a grey zip up hoodie, and his brown leather jacket.

 _At least I still have my dad's style,_ he thought before putting on his grey Adidas Ultra boost shoes. _Well, must thank my brother for the shoes he suggested._

He got in the car with Meredith and Derek and put his headphones in to listen to music while they drove to the hospital.

"You guys need a more fuel efficient car. This car is robbing you." Rajesh said making Derek laugh and Meredith shake her head.

They walked in and Derek and Meredith told him to go to the office and wait for them while they changed into their scrubs.

Rajesh walked up the stairs and down the hall towards Derek's office when walked into a doctor.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry." Rajesh said helping her pick up the papers she dropped.

"Yeah, well tell that to my patient who is waiting for me, jackass." The lady doctor said.

Rajesh craned his neck back. "Just shut up and get to your patient Grandma."

He walked away before she could answer, not giving a damn even if she did. He walked into a group of doctors at a computer.

He saw the video while Owen was explaining it to Bailey.

"Look at that. He thinks he has an opening after Martin and…"

And then the defensive player pummels the player.

"Holy crap." Rajesh laughed. "That's when you quit."

Owen turned around to Rajesh. "Hey, how are you doing?"

Rajesh waved a hand. "Day by day. Better than that guy though. That could be his career."

"Let's hope not." Derek said from behind him, which made Rajesh jump.

"Seriously? You need to stop being so sneaky." Rajesh said.

Everyone laughed and then a woman walked in with a doctor he saw the day before.

"Hey!" Everyone greeted her.

Rajesh was just hanging back.

"What's he doing here?" The woman asked in disgust.

"This is Rajesh. He's staying with me now."

Before the woman could say anything, Mark came back. "Everything's ready."

"See you later, Grandma." Rajesh said.

The glare she gave him was absolutely hilarious. When he turned to Derek, he saw the confusion.

"Long story."

* * *

He kept walking up the stairs and to Derek's office where he found an older man already there.

"Oh. I can wait outside.' Rajesh said.

"No. No. Sit down." The man said.

"Who are you?" Rajesh asked.

"I'm Dr. Webber."

"The Dr. Richard Webber. As in the Dr. Webber that was chief." Rajesh noted.

Richard hung his head. "Yes."

"Why so down, Pops?" Rajesh asked.

"Pops?" Richard asked widening his eyes.

"One thing about me is that I make up nicknames for people. Names that best describe what the represent. You… you look like you're the father of this hospital. You nurtured it and grew it into the program we have today. So yeah, you're Pops."

Richard was astonished at this. "Thanks, Rajesh."

"Call me Raj. All my friends do."

Richard laughed. "Want a tour of the place?"

Rajesh nodded and followed him. As they were walking across the hospital, they got to know a lot about each other.

"I'm sorry about your family." Richard said.

"Don't be." Rajesh chuckled. "I'm just glad they are together. At least they get to know about the daughter they were going to have, the son that they love and treasure, and each other."

"What about you?" Richard asked.

"I know my parents loved me. But I was the odd one out. I made choices that bugged them all of the time Until a year ago, I was overweight, and every time my dad tried to convince me to lose the fat, I just nodded and ignored him. But one day, I tried asking a girl out. She laughed at me and made my life hell. So, now I'm here…in the best shape of my life, but because of humiliation, not love."

Richard nodded. "I can understand that."

"What about you, Pops? What's on your mind?"

Richard sighed. "Well, I think I might be losing my job as Chief. Only wanted that to happen when I retire."

"Would you still have a job at the hospital as a surgeon?"

"Yes."

"Then what are you waiting for Pops. Forget about the codes and-and the laws and the rules for sometime. Forget about thinking about who to schedule for surgeries and just start doing what you were born to…operate."

Richard paused and thought for a moment. "You know, you're right."

Rajesh just laughed. "Come on Pops? You're supposed to get wiser when you age."

* * *

Rajesh walked back into the house with Derek and Meredith surprised to find bags and trash around.

"Lexi and Alex are moving back in." Meredith said.

Rajesh nodded. "I can stay on the couch."

"Nonsense." Derek said. "You're stuff's ready in the attic. Come on."

After settling down, Rajesh finally got into his bed. The one thing he learnt from his father was to never show weakness in front of anyone. So when Derek said good night and closed the door, Rajesh turned the opposite side and quietly cried himself to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – I'm Still Standing

Raj got back from his run. The feeling he had the first time he ran with no shirt and could feel the wind against his skin was exactly the same one he had today. It never gets old.

He picked up his shirt, which was on the mailbox, and threw it onto his shoulder. He walked into find Alex and Lexi in the kitchen.

"Whoa." Lexi said. "Boy's got abs."

Rajesh smiled. He put his shirt on and got some water. "Guys have any plans tonight?"

Alex and Lexi looked at each other. That gave Rajesh his answer. "Ok. The Wolfman remake is out and I want to go see the hot and sexy Emily Blunt. So…who's in?"

Alex sighed. "Don't you have a girlfriend or something?"

Rajesh shook his head no. "Nope. Not going down that path until later. Maybe in college."

Lexi laughed. "Well, Mark is completely avoiding me. So count me in. I need a movie and dinner anyway."

"I'm good kid." Alex said as he walked upstairs.

Rajesh turned to Lexi. "Alright, dinner and a movie. Surprise me woman. I want to be swept off my feet. Pick me up at 6." Raj winked.

Lexi laughed at Rajesh's shenanigans and went back to eating her cereal.

"See yah Raj."

"Love yah Lex."

* * *

The next day Rajesh woke up late and went downstairs to the second floor. He opened the bathroom door, saw blonde hair, and sighed.

"Ok. If you're sleeping with Karev and stay the night, lock the damn bathroom when you use it."

The woman turned around and Rajesh screamed. "Ahh!"

"Really, Rajesh?" Lexi asked.

"What the fuck, Lexi? What did you do to your hair?"

Lexi smirked. "Changed it. It's about time I changed a few things."

"To what, more desirable and less intelligent? I mean you seriously look like you're trying way too hard for Mark."

"I'm not. I just want to change my hair."

Rajesh shook his head and just walked out the bathroom and went back to his room.

"Where are you going?" Lexi asked.

"Back to my room!" Rajesh yelled before closing his door.

* * *

Rajesh walked the steps to the Seattle Volunteer Rescue Squad. He opened the door to the ambulance bay.

"Rajesh!"

Rajesh turned around to find his friend Jackson on shift tonight. "Jackson, what's up man?"

"Uh nothing much. Hey listen, Richter had to cancel his shift and now I'm just a driver. I need an AIC, think you can handle it?"

"Dude, I'm 16. I haven't been cleared by the Board."

"Actually," an older man said while stepping out of the shadows making Rajesh jump, "I just did."

Rajesh had a hand on his heart. "What are you? Batman?"

The older man smiled and hugged Rajesh. "It's so good to see you."

Rajesh nodded. "You too, Mr. Bates."

"Jackson," Mr. Bates said, "let's get Rajesh his uniform."

* * *

Rajesh sat in the ambulance with Jackson. "It's the restaurant. It collapsed. There's going to be PD and FD on the site. We need to move fast." Rajesh said.

"Got it boss." Jackson said as they got out of the Rig.

Rajesh and Jackson walked up to the scene and were told to standby until the building was cleared. One by one, firefighters began getting people out and the last one was teenager.

"He concrete block fell on his leg. He still has a pulse. His girlfriend's here."

Rajesh nodded and they took the kid to the rig on the stretcher.

A girl ran to them in her fancy dress and heels. "I'm his sister. Can I come with?"

"Yeah. Get in." Rajesh said. "Jackson get us there ASAP."

"Got it, boss."

Rajesh closed the doors and got to work. "Call your parents. Tell them you're going to Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital."

The girl immediately pulled out her cellphone as Rajesh got to work. He heard the fast beeping as they got on the road. He looked at the monitor and saw his heart rate elevating and oxygen levels decreasing. He notices a purple bruising on his chest.

"Crap. Jackson, we have pneumothorax here. Where's that hospital?"

"Five minutes out."

"He doesn't have five minutes."

Rajesh looked back at him and then decided to treat it. He got a 1.75 inch 14 gauge needle and prepped his chest. He gave him some oxygen form the tank on the stretcher and inserted the needle into his chest near the third rib.

He sucked the blood out of his lungs and watched as the heart rate and oxygen levels steadied out at a normal rate. Rajesh sighed and leaned back on his chair.

"You're brother's a strong one." Rajesh said looking at the girl.

The girl smiled with eyes full of tears as they reached the hospital. Jackson helped them lower the stretcher and Rajesh helped the girl out and they took the patient into the ER.

A doctor caught up to them. "Seventeen year old male in the restaurant collapse had a cement block crushing his leg. Stabilized it. He had a pneumothorax that was also treated in the rig. He's all yours."

"Pneumothorax? You can't do that." The doctor said.

"I don't need to explain it. Just treat him." Rajesh said and walked away. He noticed the time and that his shift would be over.

He got back into the rig with Jackson and typed up his report that he would bring later to the hospital.

* * *

He entered the hospital in his brown leather jacket, blue jeans, and grey t-shirt. He also decided to get some flowers for that girl he saw before. Poor girl's dinner got ruined.

He walked through the ER doors and into Lexi. "What the hell, woman?"

Lexi laughed. "Who are these for?"

"Patient of mine. Sister got her dinner ruined."

"Oh, pneumothorax. Yeah heard of some paramedic that impressed Altman with the treatment. Even the needle was the right size. Says she couldn't have done it better."

Rajesh smiled.

Lexi caught on. "No."

"What?"

"You're the guy? What the hell, dude?"

"Oh bite me." Rajesh smiled as he walked up to the elevator.

"I can't believe you did that."

"You learn a few things when you have practically lived at a Rescue Squad."

Rajesh pressed the button the Surgical Floor.

"She's in the waiting room. I think her parents are here."

Rajesh nodded and walked into the waiting room. He found the girl sitting in a chair alone.

"Hey." Rajesh said getting her attention.

The girl looked up at him and smiled. She immediately got out of her chair and hugged him.

"Thank you so much. You saved him."

Rajesh smiled and held her until she released him. "What's going on, now?"

"They had to take him to surgery for the leg. It just finished. They are talking to my parents."

Rajesh nodded. "I'm Rajesh."

The girl smiled. "Grace."

"Nice to meet you Grace." Rajesh gave her the flowers. "It's just for the dinner. I know things didn't go as planned, but I'm glad your brother is ok."

Grace smiled. "Thank you. Do you have anywhere to be?"

Rajesh smirked. "Yeah." He saw her face fall. "I need to be here until your parents are back."

Grace laughed. "God that was so cheesy."

Rajesh smiled. "What can I say? I'm just that kind of guy. I dig the old school love notes, romantic dinners, and in the rain kisses."

"Are you referring to the notebook?' Grace asked shockingly.

Rajesh shrugged. "Spend enough time with a sister who cries at everything, you'll even watch the notebook and hold her seven times."

Grace laughed. "How old are you?"

"I'm 16."

"16? How did you know that stuff to help my brother?"

"My dad was a doctor. I learnt from him."

"Where is he now?'

"Away. My family decided to go on this trip around the world for along time. I don't know when they'll be back."

"You're alone?"

"No. I have a sister and brother who work here. So I'm staying with them. Their landlords said it was fine."

"Oh. So what school do you go to?"

"I'm thinking about transferring to Garfield for my junior year."

Grace's eyes widened. "I go to Garfield. I'll be a senior, but we'll make the best out of it."

Rajesh nodded and smiled. "I'd really like that."

They fell into a comfortable silence and Rajesh saw that her hand was trembling. He slowly took her hand into his and laced their fingers.

Grace looked at the hand and then into his eyes. "I don't know what you expect from me."

Rajesh sighed. "To be honest, I don't know if I will ever see you again even in school, but right now, I just expect you to be calm and wait for your parents. You said you're brother is fine. If there is one thing I know, it's that family is always there for you. Let me be here for you now."

Grace nodded and moved her head to his shoulder. He stayed like that as she fell asleep and waited for their parents.

The doors opened and two well dressed individuals walked into the room. The looked to Rajesh and Grace and made their way to them.

"Grace. Your parents are here." Rajesh softly said.

She opened her eyes and saw her parents. She quickly ran into their arms and cried with them. Rajesh was just about to leave them some privacy when her father stopped him.

"Who are you?" The father asked.

"That is Rajesh. He's the paramedic that saved John."

The woman gave no thought before pulling Rajesh into Grace and her father. The three hugged him and thanked him over and over again.

"Sir, I assure you, it's your son. He's the strong one. I just gave him a push in the right direction. I hope he has a great recovery."

Rajesh then looked at Grace. "I need to go. My sister's going to freak out. I'll see you later. Bye Sir…Ma'am."

Rajesh walked away from the family and out of the waiting room. He turned to find Lexi looking through the window.

"You really think of me as your sister?" Lexi asked with tears in her eyes.

Rajesh chuckled. "Of course. Lexi, you, Meredith, Derek, and the rest are the best things that have happened to me since that night. I don't think I would have survived without you guys."

Lexi smiled and hugged him. Rajesh put his arm around her shoulders and walked with her to the lobby.

They ran into Alex and he dropped her off with him. There was some unresolved sexual tension between them that he did not want to witness again.

Rajesh walked out the hospital and sat on the bench waiting for a ride to get home. He was staring off into space when he felt someone tap on his shoulder. He looked to see Grace standing next to him.

"Hi. Aren't you supposed to be with your brother?" Rajesh asked while standing up.

Grace smiled. "Yeah, but I need to change. I'm headed home for a while."

After a few moments of just staring at each other, Grace finally broke the silence. "Can I see your phone?"

Rajesh nodded and gave it to her.

"I'm texting myself from your phone. I would really like to see you again."

"I would like that too, Grace." Rajesh said.

They both smiled at each other and then Grace started walking away. "Good night, Rajesh."

"Good night, Grace."

Rajesh watched her walk to her car and drive away. He walked back into the hospital only to be stopped by the doctor he saw when he brought Grace's brother to the hospital.

"Hey. You're that guy who fixed the pneumothorax." The doctor said.

"Uh yes. I'm sorry for being rude when we met, it's just that we didn't have time and I needed to get back to the restaurant to help."

The doctor waved her hand. "Don't worry about it. By the way, I'm Teddy Altman."

"Nice to meet you Dr. Altman."

"No. You can call me Teddy. After seeing the way you handled that patient, you can call me on a first name basis."

Rajesh smiled and they started walking in sync.

"You know, you have a knack to be a trauma surgeon."

"I don't know Teddy. Not everyone is as hot as you."

Teddy paused and looked at him.

"Oh one thing about me is that I always speak the truth. Kind of annoying that I can't control that." Rajesh said.

Teddy chuckled. "So, Meredith and Derek are waiting for you in their office. Go ahead."

Rajesh thanked her and ran up to the office. He opened the door to find Derek and Meredith laughing.

"I love this hospital!" Rajesh said.

Derek and Meredith laughed again.

"So, we heard that you treated a pneumothorax." Derek said.

Rajesh nodded and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah. I was a part of the rescue squad and Dad…" He spaced out and started thinking about his father.

Derek got up and guided him to the couch.

Meredith sat next to him. "You know it's ok to talk about him, right?"

Rajesh nodded. "It just doesn't feel real. I woke up the past few days thinking I was in my room and I would walk down to find my family at the counter table making fun of how I sleep late all the time."

Rajesh took a breath. "The funeral is tomorrow, but I don't know if I can do this."

Rajesh began to hyperventilate and Derek kneeled in front of him. "Deep breaths."

Rajesh calmed his breathing down, but couldn't stop the tears. "I want them back. I want my dad to tell me I did a good job today. I want my mom to be angry that I had a dangerous call today and worry and be that caring person she always is. I want my brother to know I actually like a girl I met today. I want to help raise my little sister. I can't want those things anymore."

* * *

Derek and Meredith held onto him as he sobbed.

Rajesh walked through the doors of the house he called home for the past few days. The police and DCFS had brought over all of his clothes form the house since it was still a crime scene. He laid out his black suit on his desk and chair before lying down in his bed. With all of the thoughts of tomorrow was going to go, he ended up quietly crying and staring at the ceiling before sleep overcame him.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 – Wanted Dead Or Alive

It's not everyday when you see an entire family being buried. It's not everyday where you see a boy have to bury his mother, father, brother, and sister on the same day at the same time. Yes there are many people that lose a mother or a father, or maybe even a sibling, but not a lot have lost everyone in an instant.

In 2010, there was a violent crime every 25.3 seconds, an aggravated assault every 40.5 seconds, a robbery every 1.4 minutes, a forcible rape every 6.2 minutes, and a murder every 35.6 minutes. The FBI estimated 14,748 people were murdered in the United States in the entire year of 2010, which basically means that 5 out of 100,000 were killed.

When you look at the numbers nationwide, 5 out of 100,000 actually shows that the murder rate decreased by 4.8% from 2009. So statistically, the data shows something good, but humanly, it shows that some monsters still live in this world.

Now of course, murder can be categorized into different things. There is murder by attacking someone with or without a weapon, which means the intention of killing someone. There is also murder by accident. Someone can be driving in the neighborhood and a skateboarder or bike rider comes out of nowhere. Someone could have had a tough day or their life is falling apart so they decided to take the edge off with alcohol, only forgetting to not drive because they are not in the right state of mind, and so they could crash into another car killing an innocent person on the road.

However, those did not apply to Rajesh's family. Those numbers are useless to him. At least, if this was a drunken driver, he would try to understand that they had a bad day, or even if they didn't, he would know why he had to dig four graves today, but he doesn't. The truth is, he doesn't know the reason for the funeral. He doesn't know why he had to get the gravestones. He doesn't know why he is an orphan. He doesn't know why he has to get up in front of people and talk about how he family _was_ and not _is_.

Time is the one thing that cannot be given back. There are second chances to get into college, second chances to get a job, but no matter how lucky you may think you are, there are no second seconds. And there is no telling what would happen even if you did get them back. Maybe no matter how hard you try, your destiny is your destiny.

So now, Rajesh has to put on a suit, go to the graveyard, give a speech, and bury his family. Yep, it's just another day in Rajesh's life.

* * *

Rajesh got up to his room after his shower and looked at the suit. He remembers the last time he wore a suit.

 _ **Flashback**_

" _You know, since you lost all that weight, we are now the best looking brothers at any party." Rahul said._

 _Rajesh turned around after putting his coat on. "You're damn right we are. I mean seriously. After losing like a hundred, and then gaining 25 of muscle, at 160, I look good."_

 _Rahul laughed, as they both got downstairs. They got in the car and drove to the party 35 minutes away. Their parents went there immediately from work and saved their seats at a table. Apparently, it was some Indian guy flaunting money for his daughter's birthday, and like always they had to make an appearance._

 _Rajesh and Rahul looked at each other and loved the way they dressed in sync with Rajesh's traditional black suit and Rahul's grey suit. Both had white shirts on and wore their respective shoes and matching Ray Bans._

 _To be honest, they both admitted they would have worn American-Eagle khakis, some kind of t-shirt, and their leather jackets. They wished they dressed up like normal people, not some money-laundering piece of craps._

 _Rajesh turned to his brother. "This is the last time we wear a suit to these places."_

 _Rahul turned to him. "So what, leather jackets, t-shirts, and American-Eagle Khakis?"_

 _Rajesh smiled and laughed while looking at the road. "You read my mind."_

 _ **Flashback Over**_

Rajesh looked to his closet. He knew what he needed to do.

* * *

Derek, Meredith, Lexi, and Alex were waiting for him in the kitchen when he got down the stairs.

"Where's your suit?" Lexi asked. Rajesh turned to them while he put on his brown casual boots.

Lexi looked at him head to toe. He wore grey Ray Ban wayfarers, a white t-shirt, grey American-Eagle khakis, with his boots, and held his brown leather jacket in right hand.

"I'm ready." Rajesh said.

Meredith nodded and they all walked out and drove to the cemetery. They arrived there late actually, and everyone was waiting. There were family friends, friends from his school, and the doctors from Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital. Well, the main ones that worked on his family and he had gotten to know.

He walked to the front immediately and everyone took their seats.

"Thank you for coming. I see a lot of people here today that cared about my family and that is great. Thank you to friends of my parents and brother, my friends from military school, and the doctors that worked hard to save my family."

Rajesh looked at them for a moment.

"I would have worn a black suit or at least black clothing, but my brother and I always hated wearing those fancy clothes and not being us. This," he said pointing to his clothes, "is what we are. This is my family. We walk around the house yelling at each other, we buy our clothes from the mall down the street, not Gucci or Prada, we order pizza most of the time, and we make each other's lives hell, but we love each other…we take care of each other."

Rajesh took a moment. "Or at least we used to. I don't know how I will go on not seeing their faces everyday, but I do know that they were loved by each and every one of you here today in some way."

He looked at the caskets. They were all closed because Rajesh didn't want anyone to see the attacks on his family.

"They say people don't die when your hearts stops. It's when you're put into the ground, and your name is forgotten." He turned back to the group. "So please, remember the kind and loving people they were, and keep them in your memories as I do. Thank you."

Rajesh sat back down and let the priest take over. He said a few verses even though they were Hindu, but Rajesh didn't know the guidelines to do a Hindu funeral. So this was the best he did. It's not like any of the Hindu families helped him anyway.

When the priest was done, they lowered the four caskets into the graves. Everyone began leaving when the gravedigger began filling up the graves with dirt. The man finished his mother's and father's graves, but something just made Rajesh stand up and walk to him when he started his brother's. He took out his wallet and pulled out a fifty and held it out for the man.

"Can I do this? Please?" Rajesh begged.

The man nodded and took the fifty, leaving the shovel at the site. Rajesh picked it up and walked to the grave. He began filling it up with dirt.

He began to sweat. He took off his jacket and threw it behind him. He was sweating and puffing out air before wiping his face with the bottom of his shirt and continuing to his brother.

"Rajesh, you don't need to do this." Lexi said from behind him.

He turned his head and could see Lexi, Alex, Meredith, and Derek. He looked in Derek's eyes and saw some type of understanding.

"Yes. I do." Rajesh said before going back to work on his brother's grave.

 **Rahul Arjun**

 **An Innocent Soul**

 **Lost Within The**

 **Blaze**

 _ **Flashback**_

" _There's only so much I can do." Rahul said._

" _What the hell are you talking about now?" Rajesh asked his brother._

 _They both were lying on the grass at the park in their neighborhood and looking at the clouds._

" _I tried to get them to not send you to military school, but there's only so much I can do. You back talked mom, called dad things I can't say, and on top of that, spent a night with friends and alcohol."_

" _I didn't drink!" Rajesh yelled._

" _That's not the problem. The problem is that you were there. That you somehow have lost your way."_

 _Rajesh sighed and got up. "What are you talking about?"_

 _Rahul got up. "In school, we are talking about losing yourself. Sometimes we lose our way because we forget our purpose."_

 _Rajesh raised an eyebrow at him. "What the fuck goes on in your school?"_

 _Rahul shrugged. "It's not like you would understand anyway. I'm in the Gifted English Program."_

 _Rajesh feigned hurt as he covered his heart with his hand. "Ow!" He sassed._

 _Rahul smiled. "Anyway, you need some kind of remorse. You're being shipped to military school. The next thing I know I can be going there and it's because of you."_

" _What are you getting at?"_

" _I'm saying you need to make a path. Not pick one. Don't follow anyone or what they say. Build your own path brick by brick. Brick one, go to this school and buck up. Brick two, chose what to do with your life. Brick three, play it out. What ever you choose, see it until the finish line."_

 _Rajesh sighed and fell back onto the grass. "How are you so smart for a ten year old?"_

 _Rahul laughed. "You're pretty dumb, so anything is smart for you."_

 _Rajesh's jaw dropped before he got up. Rahul knew what he was doing and suddenly, Rajesh chased him around the entire park until they fell laughing so hard they were crying._

 _ **Flashback Over**_

Rajesh finished his brother's grave and moved to the last one. The one life he had waited for with so much excitement. The one life he wanted to protect with all of his heart.

 **Sonia Arjun**

 **A Soul Lost**

 **In The Storm**

 _ **Flashback**_

 _Rajesh was holding his mom's hand in the doctor's office. His dad was pulled into work for an emergency and his brother had some kind of required club meeting so here Rajesh was holding his mom's hand as the doctor was checking in their newest addition to their family._

" _See, there's your baby."_

 _Rajesh looked at where the doctor pointed on the screen. "That's my sister. She looks very small."_

" _Well actually, your sister is expected to arrive in nine weeks, so she's actually very big and healthy."_

 _Rajesh smiled and laughed looking at his mother. "She's healthy. We have a healthy girl in the family. Just like you always wanted. She's going to be so well taken care of, she's going to have all of us wrapped around her finger."_

 _The doctor left and they had the room to themselves._

" _What are we going to name her?" He asked._

 _His mom looked at the picture the doctor gave them. "I always wanted a girl named Sonia. I remember going to school and my best friend was a girl names Sonia who lived across from me. We did everything together, until we turned 18. Her parents married her to someone and I never saw her since."_

 _Rajesh watched as his mother's eyes watered. He put his hand over his mother's and interlaced their fingers. The subtle action made her look to him._

" _I promise you that Sonia will always be safe and protected." He told her._

 _ **Flashback Over**_

Rajesh finished burying his newborn sister. He kneeled at his mother's grave and looked at the headstone.

"It's going to be hard without you, mom. I'm gonna miss you." Rajesh whispered.

He stepped back and threw the shovel on the ground. He turned and saw Derek, Meredith, Lexi, and Alex. He didn't say anything as he walked past them. He walked past the graves, past the cemetery, past the cars. He just walked and walked. He slowly made his way home, through the numbing pain in both his legs and heart.

What he didn't know was that someone followed him home, someone that would play the most important role in his life. Someone that would be the reason Rajesh would become a force to be reckoned with. Derek Shepherd watched as his wife parked in the driveway with Lexi and Alex. He watched how Rajesh stepped into the house. It was in that moment that Derek made a promise to himself, a promise that he would be there for Rajesh like he should have been for his sisters and mother.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - Heartless

Rajesh made his way into the bathroom. He took off his clothes, but kept a towel close by since everyone uses the bathroom at the same time. Today's his first day of junior year at high school. Just as he was finished shampooing his hair, the door burst open.

The residents made their way in and started using the bathroom to brush, shave, and what not. When Rajesh finished his shower, he quickly wrapped the towel around his body and opened the door to see Alex and Lexi getting ready.

"First day of school." Lexi said, "You ready?"

Rajesh wiped the water off his face and just slightly nodded tiredly while making his way back to his room, leaving Lexi and Alex a little worried.

* * *

When Rajesh finished getting ready in simple blue jeans and a plain dark grey shirt, he walked downstairs with his bag and got a cup of black coffee.

"You were up early." Derek said. "What was that, a two hour run?"

Rajesh nodded and turned to see a guy in flannel looking at him. "Did I miss something?"

Just then Alex comes in with a fake smile. "Hey, what are you doing here?"

The guy got up. "Man, you got old!" He exclaimed making Rajesh chuckle and almost spill his coffee.

Alex was too stunned to care. Instead he repeated, "Dude, uh, what are you doing here?"

"I had to drive to Portland on a job. Since I was in the neighborhood…"

"Portland's not in the neighborhood." Alex said.

"It's three hours. I can do three hours in my sleep."

Lexi got up. "Alex, he's your brother, he's allowed to come say hi."

Rajesh noticed the discomfort on Alex's face.

"Aren't you getting late for rounds, fake blonde?" Rajesh asked, making Alex, Derek, and Meredith snicker as Lexi still tried being nice as she walked out.

"It's been seven years, since you've been home." Alex's brother said.

"You haven't been home in seven years?" Derek asked.

Rajesh resisted the urge to smack Derek upside the head.

Meredith gave a look to Derek. "Derek. I have this. You need to get Rajesh to school."

Derek and Rajesh nodded as they walked out. Meredith gave them both a kiss on the cheek and they were on their way.

* * *

Rajesh looked at the school once he got there.

"You have your schedule?" Derek asked.

"Yep. Got all the classes I need." He replied.

"Calc?"

"Yep."

"Bio?"

"Yep."

"Chemistry?"

"Yep."

"Stats?"

"Yep."

"What about lunch?"

"Taken care of. Even though I have millions in the bank, Meredith gave me lunch money."

Derek smiled at Rajesh. "We changed the titles, remember. That's not until you're 18. You gonna be okay?"

Rajesh nodded. "One phone call, and we'll pick you up."

Rajesh thanked Derek and got out of the car. Almost instantly everyone looked at what looked like new kid stepping out of his dad's Porsche.

* * *

Walking into the school, he went straight to the office and got his locker number and combination. As he put everything in it, he got the feeling someone was watching him. When he closed the locker, he jumped at the sight of Grace and her brother.

"What the hell?" Rajesh said.

Grace and her brother laughed. "Hi. My name is Jason. I believe you saved my life." He shook his hand. "Come on, man. Class is this way."

Rajesh walked in between them. "How did you guys know?"

Grace smiled. "Well, I remembered you were coming here, so I called Dr. Grey to make sure you were and here we are."

Rajesh stopped. "You called Meredith?"

Grace nodded and they kept walking.

Jason walked in class first. "Luckily we have the same class schedules. Looks like you'll fit right in with the popular gang anyway. We all have the same schedules, oh and the soccer team here is looking for players, so…"

Rajesh nodded. "I'll think about it."

* * *

At lunch, they were getting to know each other as the got to the cafeteria, when Jason and Grace led him to a table full of happy and preppy kids.

Rajesh smiled as he sat down. A guy started speaking.

"I hear you're trying out for soccer." He said.

Rajesh smirked. "Thinking about it."

"Well we need the help." He put his hand out. "Henry."

Rajesh shook it. "Nice to meet you Henry."

Jason the introduced him to the rest of the table and they all started eating.

"So, I hear you're the reason this idiot's still alive." Henry said.

Rajesh chuckled with everyone. Grace then got his attention.

"So, there's a party next weekend. Every year, at the beginning, one of us hosts it. This year it's my turn."

Rajesh nodded. "Ok. Is there something I should get?"

Grace shook her head. "No, just bring yourself. We'll have a good time."

Rajesh just smiled and went back to his lunch.

* * *

Rajesh waited outside the school for Derek to pick him up. Grace stood next to him. "So, how was your first day?"

Rajesh just shook his head. "It was good. As good as a first day can be."

Grace then sobered up and spoke to Rajesh. "Uhm, when I called Meredith, she told me about what happened. I am so sorry. I didn't know. When you told me your parents were on a long trip, I didn't think you would mean they are dead."

Rajesh sighed. "It was still fresh for me. It still is. I get why Meredith told you, probably to keep an eye on me, but can you not tell anyone? It's just too soon."

Grace nodded just a black Porsche and the window dropped. "Hey, bud. Hi Grace." Meredith said.

"Hey, Dr. Grey" Grace yelled back.

Rajesh just smirked and walked to the car before Grace called his name. He turned and she hugged him.

"I am really sorry for what happened." She said.

When the pulled apart, it was just for a second, a brief second, that she quickly kissed his cheek and walked off. If Rajesh had the ability to turn red, he would, but he's too brown for that.

He got in the car to see Meredith smiling ridiculously at him. "What?" He asked.

Meredith just laughed and they drove off to the hospital. She caught him up on the day's events: the fight, the surgery, and the case where Derek had to pull the plug. When they parked, he followed her until she branched off to find Alex.

Rajesh was roaming the hall when Lexi walked into him. He grunted and looked at her. "For once, can you stop hurting me?"

Lexi just chuckled and wrapped her arm around to the nurse station and then to the residents' office room.

"Why am I going here?" Rajesh asked.

Lexi just smiled. "You'll know."

Once they walked in, Rajesh saw Alex, Meredith, Cristina, Jackson, and April.

"Guess who has a girlfriend?" Lexi asked. Everyone laughed and teased him.

Rajesh jumped and looked at Meredith. "You told them?"

Meredith shook her head.

"But then, how-"

Rajesh moved to the mirror in the room and saw two printed lips from the lipstick Grace wore.

Alex smirked. "Looks like Raj here got game."

Rajesh groaned. "It does not sound right when you say it." He said sitting next to Meredith wiping the lipstick off with a napkin.

* * *

Rajesh sat in the car with Derek and Meredith as they drove home lost in thought.

"How was school, buddy?" Derek asked.

Without acknowledging him, Rajesh asked, "Can we go to the temple?"

Derek scrunched his eyebrows. "Why?"

"Just," Rajesh sighed, "please?"

Meredith looked at Derek and nodded. He turned the car in the direction of the temple in Seattle and parked in the parking lot. Rajesh got out without a word and immediately walked in. When they caught up, Meredith and Derek saw Rajesh standing in front of the shrine in the middle. They walked up to him and stood on either side of him.

Rajesh began speaking once he knew they were there. "This is Lord Ganesha. He's the god we pray to when we're facing obstacle in life or in education. Every year, before school started, Mom used to bring my brother and I here. She had a ritual. We'd sit down, cross our legs, put our hands together, and just pray. Oh, the silence and peace we'd get from it was surreal."

Rajesh paused and sat down just like his mother taught him. Meredith and Derek followed suit. "When I didn't come here, I thought it was because I felt like I was betraying her. It wasn't that. I forgot how peaceful it was to sit here and just pray. It used to start out with stupid things when I was a kid, like toys, or video games, or even a phone. As I grew up, it just became a part of me. I guess I've been sad all week because I just missed this."

Meredith watched as Raj had his eyes closed this entire time. She knew something was off with him, but didn't want to push Rajesh away. In a way, he reminded her of Cristina.

"It like a breath of fresh air, coming out of water." Rajesh said, getting the attention of Derek even more now, remembering the words he told Meredith when Addison showed up in Seattle years ago. "I was drowning and I didn't know why."

Derek put an arm around Rajesh and Meredith did as well, putting her head on his shoulder. They just sat there, waiting for Rajesh to come to terms with himself.

"We should do this more often." Derek said. "I'd love to come here."

Rajesh opened his eyes and looked at Derek like he grew a second head. "Really?"

Meredith nodded. "Really. I like it. How about this? Just like how Sundays are for church, why don't we do Saturdays for the temple?"

Rajesh then looked at Meredith. "You'd do that?"

Derek got Rajesh's attention. "We weren't kidding when we said we'd take care of you."

For the first time in a long time Rajesh felt tears coming to his eyes, but not from despair. No, these tears were pure happiness. He would never admit he cried, but if he ever admitted it, he would make it known that he was crying from happiness.

* * *

 _One week later…._

Rajesh was walking in step with Derek and Richard. "They're here in five minutes. Make it up as we go."

Rajesh spoke. "I'm off today, since it's a holiday. I've had experience with this kind of thing before. I can help."

Derek shook his head, but Rajesh pleaded. "Oh, come on. I was part of the rescue squad, dad trained me all the time for the basics like vitals and all, and I'll be behind Dr. Webber the entire time. I'll intervene only when he says."

Derek sighed and looked at Richard, who just shrugged. "You don't speak unless spoken to, you don't move unless you're told to, and you most definitely don't touch unless you're told to. Clear?"

Rajesh nodded happily. "Clear."

Derek nodded. "As of today, you're an intern, a high school intern, that follows surgical interns."

"Sweet." Rajesh said excitedly. To be fair, he couldn't volunteer at the rescue squad until spring because of budget reasons.

Webber and Rajesh left when Derek's lawyer met with him. Rajesh quickly changed into grey scrubs and was waiting outside with Dr. Webber and Dr. Hunt when Dr. Bailey got all of the interns out with her.

"What are you doing here?" Bailey asked him.

Rajesh just smiled. "New intern."

Meredith smiles, Alex slapped his back, and Cristina scowled. "Careful Cristina, those frown lines are catching up to you."

Everyone snickered at Rajesh's comment. "You're rubbing off on him, Evil Spawn."

When the ambulance arrived and the door for the semi truck dropped, Rajesh saw a very overweight man making a joke about needing a bigger hospital. Avery got sent out because of the elephant joke. He moved quickly because of both Bailey's and Rajesh's glare.

Lexi rubbed Rajesh's shoulder to calm him down.

* * *

Rajesh was standing off to the side when everyone was checking Bobby's vitals and asking him questions. Cristina got sent out because of a no fat jokes comment, which made Rajesh and Meredith laugh.

When a woman came in stating she was Bobby's wife, Rajesh looked at Bailey and saw her face.

"Facial expressions, Dr. Bailey." He whispered.

Bailey quickly changed her expression and continued questioning Bobby.

Rajesh was walking behind Dr. Webber as they made their way on the floor. The gurney was moving smoothly until it bumped into the door sides.

"Crap. I thought it would clear it." Karev said.

Rajesh's mind went into over drive, when all of a sudden the man started getting up trying to help the doctors. Rajesh moved before thinking and moved around the man to position himself behind him. He took the bed off the spare gurney behind him and positioned it to lay it down, but he didn't do it fast enough.

 _Pop. Pop._

Bobby screamed as he fell right on top of Rajesh. However, even though Rajesh was prepared with bed off the gurney, he felt like the wind was knocked out of him.

Lying beneath Bobby, everyone was yelling.

"Alright. Alright." He said loudly.

"Rajesh, you good?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah." Rajesh said. "Dr. Webber, I'm fine. I'm going to push Bobby up. Get the gurney leveled as low as it can go."

Reed and Lexi did just that and they positioned it next to Bobby. Rajesh looked at Alex. "On three, I'm going to push with my hands, like a bench press. Dr. Webber, you and Alex push the upper torso on to the gurney. Everyone else, get help his legs once his shoulder blades are on the gurney. Ready?"

They nodded. "Ok. One. Two. Three. Argh!" Rajesh grunted loudly as he lifted close to 300 pounds of fat off him with the bed and slowly, but surely they got Bobby on the gurney. Rajesh sat up sweating like crazy when Meredith crouched down and examined him. "I'm fine. I'm good."

* * *

Rajesh was leaning against the counter at the nurse station while Callie explained the injuries to Derek.

"He can go to CT now." Callie said.

"He's not going in that CT." Derek said.

Richard spoke. "I think if we can position him I-"

Derek interrupted. "It's rated for half his weight. If it breaks, he gets hurt again, it's not available for the 50 other patients who need it."

"What about the zoo?" Charles said. "They gotta have a CT for, like, rhinos, right?"

Rajesh was about to smack Charles, but Bailey stepped in. "Percy, off the case. Goodbye."

"That wasn't a joke." Charles reasoned. "That was an actual suggestion."

"Go." Bailey said.

Owen started nodding. "It's a pretty good idea, actually."

"It's a terrible idea." Teddy said.

"Spare this man the indignity of treating him like a zoo animal." Rajesh said crudely from the side at everyone.

"If we can't get an image, we'll go with clinical labs and tests." Richard supplied, nodding at Rajesh.

"I could do a nuclear stress test on his heart." Teddy reasoned. "I just wish I could get him on a treadmill."

Owen scoffed. "That's not gonna happen."

"What about an ultrasound?" Rajesh asked.

"There's too much fat-" Owen said.

"First, speak like a doctor, it's adipose." Rajesh snapped. "And second, I meant from his the posterior part from his body. There's much less fat on his lower back than the front. Should at least get some kind of image of what's going in there."

Derek sighed. "Alright. I have a lawyer waiting for me, so I have to go. I want a meeting with all of you when his studies come back, before we go any further down this road, ok?" He turned to Rajesh. "You alright?" He asked.

Rajesh nodded and gave him a 'thumbs up.' "I'm fine, you go deal with crazy old man."

"Let's work him up." Richard said.

Everyone agreed and moved away. Rajesh stayed at the nurse station to catch his breath. Lexi walked out with the patent's wife and tried asking more questions on Bobby's lifestyle…keyword being 'tried'.

"So just a couple more questions," she started. "His diabetes, did he have it before he was immobilized?"

"No." She answered. "That's since he put on the weight."

"And that's been-um-how-how long has-" Lexi struggled until Melissa answered.

"How long has he been like this? Five years ago, his company laid off 300 employees. He tried to find work for two years. No one was hiring. And then he stopped trying. It was real hard on him. And food, well, food made him feel better. So I think he's been in pain for a while. He'd tell me it's indigestion, but I couldn't ignore it. After the news, I just had to call."

Lexi cleared her throat. "The news?"

"Well, we're gonna have a baby. I'm pregnant." Melissa said.

"How?" Lexi asked making Rajesh reel back and raise his eyebrows at her. She stammered. "I mean, Wow! Congratulations! That is-that's joyous news."

Rajesh looked at Bailey. "Allow me." He turned to Lexi and mouthed, "Off the case."

Melissa turned to Rajesh. "I'm so sorry for what happened."

"Miss, it comes with the job." Rajesh reasoned. "Now I know you're scared and worried about your husband. The doctors will do everything they can to help him. Why don't you go inside and make sure he's fine?"

When Melissa walked back in, Bailey looked at Rajesh. "16 and you're better with Bobby care than my residents."

* * *

Rajesh stood in the room with the labs when Derek walked in. "What are we looking at?"

"Bobby's got a severe deep tissue infection under his belly." Mark began. "There's a significant abscess. Hunt and I need to get in there and debride, clear out the infected fat."

"That much sudden fat loss is dangerous." Derek supplied.

"It's preferable to him dying of an infection. It's a risky surgery, yes." Owen answered.

"We'll have Bailey and Webber on standby in case he goes south." Mark said.

"What is the surgical risk calculation on a Bobby like this?" Derek asked.

"Almost too high to calculate." Rajesh said. He looked around at the doctors and Derek that looked at him. "What, I did my research. Five times the risk of heart attack, respiratory failure, airway complications," he sighed, "he's diabetic, there's risk of a ketoacidotic coma, high risk of pulmonary embolism, and believe it or not, he's malnourished, which leads to slow healing, renal failure, nerve damage, post-op infection, and a bunch of other things you guys know as well."

Everyone looked at him, especially Derek, with pride. "Good job, Rajesh, and I'm saying no. The risk is too high. That's all. Thank you, but that's it."

Richard sat straighter. "You're saying we send him away to die?"

Derek shook his head. "We send him to a bariatric center prepared for a Bobby like this, instead of us spending our time and resources caring for someone who obviously doesn't care for himself."

Derek walked out and Rajesh took a quick glance at Richard before signaling that he should follow Derek and try to convince him.

"Why are you so invested in this case?" Bailey asked Rajesh.

Rajesh smirked. "I was him."

He shocked everyone. "Not too long ago, I was dealing with weight problems, but I had the right support system. This guy, he doesn't."

"His wife is the most supportive." Teddy said.

"Come on." Rajesh groaned. "Really? The woman looks like she needs a support group herself, you think she's doing well with him? Why does he make jokes…because he's insecure about his inability to do anything to provide for his family? Why does she go with it…because she loves him. Come on guys, Psych goes hand in hand with surgery." He said walking out of the room.

* * *

Rajesh made his way to the cafeteria after stopping by the locker room. The push from earlier made him go put some deodorant on.

He was paying for his lunch next to Alex and Lexi, when Reed came in between them.

"Put me down for 715." She said.

"Got it." Alex replied.

"What happens at 7:15?" Rajesh asked.

"715 is her bet. I'm making a pool on Bobby Corso's actual weight. Twenty bucks. Closest without going over wins the pot. You want in?" Alex asked.

"You wanna get decked?' He asked back.

"How are you still on that case?" Meredith asked Alex.

"Beats me." Rajesh said.

"What is this by the way?" Cristina asked looking at his grey scrubs.

Rajesh shrugged. "Derek made me an intern."

"Oh no!" Cristina laughed. "Now your husband's making babies interns?"

Rajesh shrugged. "Who is on a case that might take hours in the O.R. and am actively participating in it, while the other are babysitting a little girl? I'm just 16, but I think my case wins." He winked making Cristina grumpy.

"Artificial insemination." Meredith said trying to change the topic. "It had to be."

"What are we talking about?" Lexi asked.

"Bobby Corso." Meredith asked. "How did they make a baby?"

Rajesh sighed. "Come on guys."

"He hasn't left the house in five years." Cristina ignored him. "It took a truck to get him here. How's he supposed to go to a fertility clinic to fill up a cup?"

"How does he find it to fill up a cup?" Alex asked.

Rajesh dropped his burger. "And I'm done."

"They can still do it. The regular way. Right?" Lexi asked.

"Have you seen the guy move?" Karev asked. "'Cause he can't, really. At all."

"Maybe he doesn't have to." Lexi said. "Maybe she does all the work."

"This is stupid-" Rajesh said.

"But how?" Cristina asked. "I mean-"

"I'm finished." The little girl said.

"Oh, um Get yourself some ice cream." Cristina said throwing some money on her tray.

"But I'm not allowed to have that much sugar."

"Get some roast beef then."

Meredith sighed. "She can sit."

"No, she can't." Cristina said. "We're talking about S-E-X."

"I'm nine, and you just spelled 'sex.'" The girl said before walking off.

Rajesh laughed. "That's good."

Cristina took a sip of her drink. "Ok. Know what? Let's say this is the wife." She said getting a fry.

Rajesh shook his head. "No! Don't do that."

"And this is him." She said picking up the burger.

Rajesh grimaced. "That is so unprofessional-"

"I won't be eating that now." Alex said.

"-and mean." Rajesh finished.

"She's gotta be on top." Cristina said.

"You guys are going to hell." Rajesh said not amused with an unimpressed look.

"She might get altitude sickness." Alex laughed

"Guys." Lexi said clearing her throat.

Cristina stammered. "Sorry. Um-"

"It's all right." Melissa said. "I get it. You're trying to figure how my husband and I managed to get a baby in here. There are some logistics involved. You want me to tell you?" She paused making the doctors look down in shame. "But first, how about you tell me how you like to do it with your husband. Or your girlfriend? Any favorite positions? Or kinks! Let's talk about that! Because I know you all must have a freak show of your own going on. Who wants to go first?" She paused again. "No? Nobody? OK. Well, it's probably none of my damn business anyway." She walked off.

Rajesh shook his head at the rest of them and just picked his tray up before throwing his lunch out and exiting the cafeteria.

* * *

Rajesh stood at the nurse station next to Karev, The overweight Bobby refused surgery and was trying to go home.

Melissa walked towards them. "You wanted me to sign discharge papers?" She asked Alex.

"Mrs. Corso," Alex started, "I'm sorry about the thing in the cafeteria."

"It's easy to make jokes about him." She started. "You didn't know him before. You don't know that inside all that is the same man I've always known. Who can make me laugh till I can't breathe. He's been trying to make you guys laugh all day, but you're too disgusted to even smile or joke with him. Make him feel like a person. I brought him here because I thought you would help him. But you're only making him feel worse. So unless you want to tell me the next step to getting him out of here and home, I don't need to hear anything from you."

She turned and walked two steps before turning back. "And I didn't say it before, but I will now. This kid here has more ethics and morals in his pinky than you have in your entire body."

Then she walked off. Rajesh looked at Alex and Alex sighed before walking into the room.

He saw them have a conversation and the facial expression change on Bobby. Next thing he knew, he was sitting in the viewing room of the O.R. watching them prep for the surgery.

* * *

Rajesh walked out of the locker room in his regular clothes. On his way out, he walked past the gym. What caught his attention, was the punching bag in the corner.

He walked in, took the spare gloves off the shelf. He took his shirt off and put the gloves on. Seconds later, he was punching. There were no combinations, no strategy, this was just simple hard punching. The only sound that came off the bad were the deep _thumps_ that filled out the room, but that night, for that one night, those sounds provided peace for Rajesh.


End file.
